Automatic closing device



Patented July 14, 1925.

f "UNITED STATES OF NEW JERSEY.

PATENT] OFFICE;

SVEN JOHAN EELING, OE HU'vUDs'rA, swEnEN, AssiGNoE, Br iviEsNE ASSIGNMENTS; 'ro THE DE LAVAL sErAEATOa COMPANY. OE NEWYOEK, N. Y., A CORPORATION AUTOMATIC CLOSING DEVICE.

i i yApplication led February 27, 1923w Serial No. 621,651.

Toy all whom it may concern: f

Be it known that I, SVEN, JOHAN EBLING, a subjectof the King of Sweden, residing at Huvudsta, Sweden, .have invented. certain new and useful Improvements in Automatic `Closing Devices, of which the following is a specification.

In milking machines operable by a partial vacuum,the `teat cups of a milking unit are vnr held in position on the teat of the cowy by means. of lvsuction within the cup and atmosphericpressure outsidethe cup; Unless the `partial vacuum `within the cupis maintained at or above a predetermined degree, the cup willv slip oii:i4 thel teat. -Suclr reduction of` partial vacuum may occur as a result of eX- `cessive.leakage of air 'intogthe fcup. If the oup slips off the teat, a large amount of air will be sucked into the piping through the free suction opening, which air on-passing through the milk pail vdeposits impurities broughtzlwith it, .thus contaminating the` the milk, especially if the tea-t cup assumes suoli `aV position that the suction openingy becomes directeddownwards.l Further, the absolute pressure in the milk pail 'and in the main vacuum Vline and in the pipe connection to other milking Vunits will rise, seriously aiecting the efficiency and operativeness' of the milking machine. ing units that communicatewith the same milk pail as the milking unit that `has been put out oi' workare especially adected. If such free influx of air is ofV too long duration, the teat cups ofall the milking meinbers may.v slip odtheir corresponding teats. The object out. the' present invention is to `prevent anyfall in the vacuum within any section of piping communicating with the Qmain vacuum pipe line from causing a serious drop in `pressurel within such line, whereby if, due to local conditions, the vac- Iuum within any givenmilking unit falls be- Ilon7 a predetermined degree, it will rnot 'cause a corresponding fall in the vacuum in the main pipe line or in othermilking units. In my invention, this result is accomplished by positioning an automatic cut-off'valve at any suitable point between twolpipe sections, one of which lcommunicates with one or more-milking units or with a milk pail and. the other 'of which communicates with the main vacuum line by causing the valve tob'e held open by thediierence between the Those milkpressure of the atmosphere and thelower absolute pressure within the piping; and by providing a Vtension device, such as a weight or spring, which tends to close the valvebut which' is not strong enough to eiect said closure unless the absolute pressure within the. .piping rises to a predetermined degree so as to reduce to a predetermined value the difference Y between such absolute pressure y and that of theatmosphere.7

` In the following description, it may be assumed thatthe cut-0E valve is arranged between ay milk pail and theniain vacuum line connected with a vacuuin'pump; or in any suitable pipe connection between a set of teat cups and the main vacuum line.

l In the drawings, which showdiiierent embodiments of the invention-k Figs. l and 2 are vertical sectional views of .one embodiment of my invention, Fig.

`*.1 showing the cut-oii2I valve in normal Aopen position and Fig` 2vshowing4 such valve in,

position to close communication between pipe sections Figs. 3,4, 5 other. embodiments of my invention. n Figs. 7 and 8 are 1detail views showing means to temporarily lock the cut-od. valve in open position.

in one of `which it is desired to prevent any and 6 are vertical sectionsof y,

Referring first to Figs. L and 2: The casing therein shown has channels land 2 connected withcommuiiicating pipe sections serious or continued drop iiiy theVJ partial vacuum. `Within the casing' is a piston valve 4 and acoiiical control valve 5 on a common .stem which extendsk through-the -head ofthe casing. The casing is provided with a groove, which establishes -ree com-` mimica-tion betweenlchannels l and 2 when the p ist-On valve 4L is in the position shown.

`The piston valve is heldr inl this ,position by atmospheric` pressure acting to "hold the `control valve `ion its seat 6. The atmosplieric .pressure is transmitted through a v'liole 8j to the' chamber 9 above lthe valve 6. f A spring-7 tends `to lift the control valve. 5 Aofi', its seat, but is not of suiicieiit strength vto overcomethepressure of the atmosphere. When, however, the vacuum inthe pipe sections is weakened to a predetermined degree, the spring 7 is of suicient strengthlto over- .come theditlerence in 'absolutepressureson Zopposite sides ofthe valve 5 and the valve-- 5 is lifted into the position shown inF ig. 2,

' thereby shifting the piston valve -4 into position to close communication between chan- Vated by the higher pressure of the surrounding medium (atmosphere), whilefthefothen surface thereof isl actuated by the lower absolute pressurefw'hich 'prevails vwithin the e closing device. In this'modilication*thel pis- 'to the lower pressure, ythe chamber 13 being brought into communication with the chanton valve 40'is provided with axiallyV eX'- tending lateral, grooves which *are opened when the valve lis lowered and closed when the valve is raised. f f f' lIn Fig.- 452m embodiment is ".shown 'in whichl the tension means f isfa Vweight instead 'of a spring and Vthel coniiectionbetween the channels 1 and 2 .isi broken' lby the lower end of the piston (which eiidQlia-s the form of a valve cone) bearing on a correspoiiding valve seatV around fthe openingofthe channel 2. If? the pistoirisl litedsdth-at 'the valve cone V11 on its upperendb'e'ars 'tightly` on a valveseat in theeoverj 12,;the1c'onnection between channels 1 and 2 opens. The piston is heldin the lastanentionedpositionso long asthe lpartial vacuum in channels 1 and 2'=does-iiot"fall below a predeterminedadegree, because the upper and lower end surfaces oifthe piston"aref'both'subject of a control valve 25D normally seated Awithin the valve casing and actuable a stem of valve 50' is'a valve 24. v`When the y'control"valve 50' is liii`ted,`valve 24: closes the 4inletofl pipe '22 into the valve casingiaud tof that kind are shown.`

ton assumes its upper position. In" this position the 'pin :15"prev`e1its the piston from 'beingfrotated The annular s urfacelof the piston being actuated bythe atmospheric .pressurefa'v surplus force is obtainedfwhich, Yduring regular working, is vgreater thanthe weight of the piston which is'y to'be adjusted according to the determineddifference in absolute pressures. If the `vacuum vwithin the closing device weakens beyond-ar predetermined degree, the pistondrops by its ownweight to its lower position.' y n In the'embodiinents described above,-the

's'pring70.` Cock 17 is inserted in a Vpipe 21 which lis connected to the valve casing by branch pipes* 22 and 23.' Connected tothe lever 19turns cock 17 into ypositionto close communication through pipe 21.

Fig. 6 shows a piston valve 18vactuated by a diaphragm 10 arranged in accordance .with Figl andadapted to 'swing ka,lever 20 into position to lift the'valve" 18 into position to cut off communication between f the two pipevsections.

By suitable adjustments` of the tension devices' and l(inthe yforms shown in Figs. 5 and 6) by varying the lengths of the levers, the capacities of the controlling devices maybe varied'within widelimits;

@All lembodiments above described vhave the common'y featureithat the valve is held in open position only when the vacuum witha.

in the pipe sections lis maintained above a predetermined degree. AOn the application of the teat* cups to the teats, the diiculty would arise of preventing theclosure of the shut-oit1 valve during the short time that the teat'cupsare'open to atmosphere,-with theresult thatwhenthe teatcups are applied, -theyfslip -oil'the'teats f In 4order to obvia'te this diHiculty,-the^valve may be so arrangedgas to beeasilylocked inits open Vposition during application of the teatcups and then released. 5 Figs. 7 andV 8 show how this may be elifected by means of a pin attached to the `movable part. VWhen said partassumes'such av position that the chan- `nels -1'and'2 communicate, locking may be `effectedbyy a rotative movement whereby the lpin 21'1 in-Fig.v p lower'surii'ace of the cover and-.the pin 221 l is caused to bear on the in Fig-8 'engages a notch-231 perpendicular rto' the guiding groove.-

/Viliile 'ordinarily-the medium surrounding the valve'casing will be the atmosphere, it is Vnot intended to exclude any equivalent arrangement wherein` the absolute pressure oi' the surrounding medium is substantially above the normal absolute pressure @ofthe medium within the pipe sections. ,f f 4Whatl claimris: l

' 1. Ina milking machinecharacterized by piping in which. a partial vacuum is normally maintained, the combination of an automatic cut-oli' :valve interposed in said piping, a, valve actuatorshaving opposed pressure surfaces-open respectively tofsaid` partial l vacuum land .to the ,v atmosphere and tending by'said unbalanced pressure to maintain.saidcut-oif valve in position-.to establish communication between` said pipe sections, and. tension.v means operatingV against saidatmospheric pressure and tending incooperation with the absolute .pressureof said partial vacuum toV move the cut-off. valve into .position to-close communidegree kof `partial vacuum within the lpiping adjacent the valve, while operable to so move cation between said pipe sections but not jof `'siifiicient strength to so move said v alve .during the -maintenance of a predetermined isd said Valve when said partial Vacuum falls beu In testimony whereof I affix my signature 10W predetermined degree. in presence of tWo Witnesses.

2. The device set forth in claim l oom- Y bined with means to positively look the cut- SVEN JOHAN ERLING 5 0H valve in position to maintain said com- Witnesses:

munieation open While the piping is tempo- ERIC HALGER,

rarily in communication With atmosphere. NILS HANSsON. 

